BATON ROUGE- Two men are behind bars accused of stealing $500 worth of welding cables from Pala Interstate on Old Hammond Highway.

Authorities say they were patrolling the area around the business because of previous copper thefts. That's when they saw 36-year-old Thomas Price and 39-year-old Jason Bowman stacking the cables and going in and out the building.

Detectives arrested Price in the woods behind the business and Bowman was taken into custody on Old Hammond Highway.

Both men are charged with simple burglary and felony theft and are booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish prison.